Package.



FFQ.

WILLIAM S. MELLEN, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR T0 MOUND CITY PAINT &

COLOR COMPANY, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION OF MISSOURI.

PACKAGE.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM S. MELLEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of St. Louis, State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Packages, of which the following is a specification, reference being had there in to the accompanying drawings.

This invention consists in a flat-topped cap for a coneor dome-topped receptacle .and means for attaching said cap to the receptacle. Its use is not restricted to conetopped or doinetopped receptacles, but is applicable to all forms of tops which are of such shape as to possess the disadvantages about to be described.

Cans for containing oil, paint, and other liquids have heretofore been provided with flat tops and holes or spouts for the exit of the liquid, but in use it is found that the liquid will not pour well and conveniently out of such receptacles. On the other hand, cone-topped cans or receptacles are found to provide great convenience in pouring, and, therefore, a steady demand exists for receptacles having that form of top. The same are found objectionable, however, when liquid is transported therein, as, for instance, in a railroad car, for the following reasons. As such receptacles are usually made of tin, protected around the cylindrical part by veneer, their tops are so fragile as to be incapable of sustaining a great superimposed weight, and, therefore, are not suitable to form the lowest tier or layer of freight in a railroad car. Furthermore, the irregular shape of the top of the cans makes it practically impossible to pack a second tier of such cans in a railroad car, and makes it inconvenient to pack any other kind of freight thereon. If, however, the lower part of the car be filled with dry goods or other freight, great loss and damage ensues from the shipment of such cans of liquid packed in the car as the topmost layer of freight, because of the leakage from said cans upon the freight constituting the lower contents of the car. Such leakage arises both from seepage through the mouth of the can and, also, because the corks that close such mouths work out thereof by reason of the jarring in transit. Of course, it would be impracticable from a business standpoint to pay such freight rates as to secure the exclusive use of an entire rail- Specification of Letters Patent.

App1ication filed May 22, 1909.

Patented July 5, 1910.

Serial No. 497,685.

road car for the shipment of a single tier or layer of such receptacles merely covering the floor of the car and not being built up in other tiers or accompanied by other freight so that the entire space in the car would be utilized.

The present invention contemplates means for holding the corks in place in the mouths of the cans; means for preventing the leakage from the cans getting upon the other freight, if there be any; and protection or reinforcement of the irregularly-shaped top of the can so that such receptacles can be loaded in tiers in a railroad car or the like, or other freight be acked upon the top of same; and, principa 1y, provision of a fiat top that will allow similar receptacles or other freight to rest thereupon in a neat, compact, and convenient manner for transportation purposes.

In the drawings like numbers of reference denote like parts wherever they occur, and Figure 1 is a view in perspective. Fig. 2 is a sectional view, on the line 2-2, Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a detail of a binding strap; Fig. 4 is a view in perspective of an alternate form of construction; Fig. 5 is a sectional view, on the line 5-5, Fig. 4; Fig. 6 is a detail of a binding staple.

The tin can 1, having the coneor domeshaped top 2 (or other non-flat top), is usually protected with a veneer sheath 3 around its cylindrical portion, leaving the non-fiat top of the can unprotected and exposed and extending above the veneer sheath. Such sheath need not be of veneer, but can be made of any suitable material, such, for instance, as sheet steel or the fabric of my Patent No. 859,679, dated July 9, 1907. While only one layer of such fabric or ordinary veneer is indicated in the drawings, either one layer or more may be used, as desired. The present invention consists in the addition of the flat-topped cap 4 not only to inclose and retain leakage through mouth 5, nor only to hold cork 6 in said mouth, nor only to protect cone 2 from indentation, bending, and other injuries, but, also, to give a flat top to the package as a whole, notwithstanding the fact that the desires of the trade are satisfied by giving them the conetoppecl receptacle from which liquids pour with greater convenience than from flattopped cans.

In the form shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the

joint 7 between the cap 4 and sheath 3 is covered and overlapped by the hoop 8, which may be of veneer or of the fabric of my above-mentioned Patent No. 859,679 or of any other suitable material. Cap 4 may be attached to sheath 3 by metal straps 9 or by staples 10 or by any other suitable means.

In the form shown in Figs. 4 and 5 a hoop 12 is bound to cap 4 and the hoop 13 to sheath 3. After assemblage, cap 4 is united to sheath 3 by simply driving a plurality of staples 10 into hoops 12 and 13.

For particular uses, one or the other of the forms of construction illustrated in the drawings and described herein may prove especially suitable, and other variations within the scope of the following claims may be made without departing from the spirit of this invention. For instance, it is relatively immaterial Whether the cap 4 be longer than the sheath 3 or vice versa, or whether they be of equal length.

It is to be observed that any weight that may be superimposed upon the flat-topped cover will be supported upon the sheath member, and not upon the cork or mouth or cone-topped upper portion of the inner receptacle. Nevertheless, the flat part of cover 4 is so close to cork 6 that it prevents its jarring out.

When a receptacle of this kind has been transported to its destination, the cover 4 is removed from the top of the can, and, upon tilting the can, liquid can be poured out of its mouth.

I claim:

In combination with a receptacle, a protecting sheath therefor, a cap for the sheath which seats on the top edge of the sheath, a hoop disposed at the juncture of the sheath and cap, said hoop having its sides extending over onto the sheath and cap and a series of metal straps having bodies of U-shape and having their ends turned outwardly and formed with openings, and fastening means passed through said openings, to engage the sheath and its cap, one end of each strap seating on the sheath and the opposite end seating 011 the cap.

In testimony whereof I have aflixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM S. MELLEN.

Witnesses:

GLADYs WVALToN, EDNA J. Goonnn. 

